Diabetes sufferers may be provided with quantities of insulin, for instance by injection, sometimes a number of times daily. The quantity of insulin that is appropriate depends on the person's blood glucose level, so blood glucose level measurement can also occur a number of times daily.
Blood glucose level measurement typically is a multi stage process. The first is lancing, in which a lancet, or needle, is used to pierce the skin of a user, for example on the end or side of a finger. Once a suitable amount of blood has been produced, a sample is taken on a testing strip. A person may need to squeeze their finger in order to cause sufficient blood to be expelled. Sometimes lancing needs to be reperformed. The testing strip then is provided to a meter, typically an electronic meter, which analyses the sample, for example by determining a parameter (e.g. an electrochemical potential or voltage, resulting from a chemical reaction between the blood sample and an enzyme present in the testing strip, and provides a blood glucose measurement result. This measurement is then used to determine an amount of insulin to be consumed by the person.
Lancing can be painful or at least uncomfortable for a user. Numerous efforts have been made to reduce or minimise discomfort to a user in the lancing process. More effective efforts typically involve more complicated, and thus more expensive, mechanical or electro-mechanical arrangements.